


Yellow is the Color of Sunshine

by Silvanuyx



Category: Welcome to Night Vale
Genre: Angst, BUCKETS OF ANGST, Cecil is Mostly Human, M/M, Psychic Cecil, Strexcorp
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-05-18
Updated: 2014-05-18
Packaged: 2018-01-25 12:51:37
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,610
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1649240
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Silvanuyx/pseuds/Silvanuyx
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Strex took over but Carlos and his team can stop their main weapons. But Cecil had a vision that something bad was going to happen.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Yellow is the Color of Sunshine

**Author's Note:**

> This was inspired by the post on Tumblr that made the rounds awhile ago that said "Imagine Person A singing “You are my sunshine” as Person B slowly dies in their arms".

Cecil woke up with a scream, coated in a cold sweat and he knew one thing in these uncertain times.

He had to find Carlos, he had to stop Carlos.

If he did nothing, Carlos would die.

\-----

Carlos put the finishing touches on the EMP generator with Casey, grinning as he did so. “Not bad for a bunch of biologists and chemists, huh?” he said with a slightly manic laugh. He had been up for the last 48 hours without a single break, and was running on coffee and some stimulants that were probably illegal.

“Okay guys, we’re nearly done. Load it on to the back of the truck,” Carlos ordered loudly. “And for fuck’s sake, don’t drop it,” he snapped as he took his position at one corner of the heavy machine. “We’ll wire it directly into the truck’s battery. That should give us the juice we need,” he ordered over the sound of the huffing scientists and officers.

The generator was placed in the bed of the truck, where it barely fit, and the wires were run to the front hood, but left unhooked, so it would be easy to set up and set off when needed.

“Everyone to the bunkers with the nice citizens now,” Carlos called to the others and climbed in the truck.

“Carlos! What are you doing!” one of the other scientists called after him.

Carlos ignored them as he turned on the truck and started to drive. He was the one with the best ideas on what to do if something went wrong with it. He had been there for the entirety of the build, and despite the stimulant-induced jitters he had, he knew the most about the generator. There were Strexbots™ all over the city, this had to work and it had to go off.

He rumbled loudly down the streets of Night Vale, bumping over potholes formed by the sunny yellow robots, and trying desperately to keep out of sight of them.

The truck rumbled to a stop in a small alley by the town center and Carlos scrambled out. He connected the wires to the truck battery, and ran to the bed of the truck.

“Carlos! Stop!”

Carlos whirled around, staring at Cecil as he ran towards him. “Cecil! What are you doing here?” he demanded, starting to climb into the bed of the truck to prepare the EMP generator.

“It’s going to blow up and kill you,” Cecil said desperately as he reached up to hold Carlos’ pant leg. He looked desperate.

“Does it work?” Carlos asked, pulling his pant leg out of Cecil’s grip.

Cecil hesitated, then looked away. “Yes. It gives off the EMP, then explodes. But Carlos - “

“There’s no one else, Cecil,” he said softly, pulling off the front of the generator and looking in to it. “If it’s going to explode, you should get out of here,” he said, fiddling with the internal workings of the generator. It was doubtful he would be able to find the issue before he needed to set it off, but he could try. If it exploded after the pulse was sent out...

“Carlos there’s no _time_!” Cecil cried behind him. Carlos ignored him. He had to try at least. If it was after the pulse it might be there…

He could hear Cecil clamber into the back of the truck behind him as he tried to figure out what was wrong, but didn’t think anything of it until a cloth that smelled of chloroform pressed over his nose and mouth.

He struggled desperately against the hand holding the cloth to his face, forcing his head back to look into familiar violet eyes that were filled with tears.

The last thing he heard was Cecil whisper, “I’m so sorry.”

The last thing he saw was Cecil’s sorrowful face before his world went black and he felt himself tip sideways.

\-----

Cecil grunted as he pulled Carlos out of the bed of the truck, tucking him carefully under it, hoping the truck’s body would keep any shrapnel from him. He bit his lip, remembering his visions. He didn’t think any shrapnel got through the truck…

_Carlos grinned triumphantly as he fiddled with the internal workings of the EMP generator. Behind him, a sunny yellow Strexbot™turned the corner. The laser blast that Carlos hadn’t noticed disintegrated the truck and everything in it._

He shook his head to clear it of the remnants of a vision and climbed back in the bed of the truck and considered the dials and knobs and how did they expect anyone

In his visions, Carlos had looked at dials that looked exactly like those, turned knobs to look like that, and then hit that button.

_Carlos hit the button and a Strexbot™ froze behind him as the the generator exploded, almost as if it was horrified by the sight of the scientist being impaled by metal shrapnel and bleeding out alone in the middle of Night Vale._

He looked around for something long. He could use it to hit the button while staying somewhat shielded. Might not save him, but it might.

Metallic whirrs filled the air as a Strexbot™ stepped around the corner, sunny yellow body dusty but still bright enough to singe Cecil’s eyes. The painted smile on it was eerie and Cecil hated it with every bone in his body before the hate turned to utter despair.

He had taken too long.

There was no time.

There wasn’t time to save both of them anymore.

But Carlos would live if he hit this tiny red button.

That was what mattered, right?

He stared at the innocuous button, his distorted reflection staring back, then looked up at the hum of the Strexbot™ charging its weapon.

He had always loved too much.

And Carlos was worth everything.

Cecil hit the button.

\-----

Carlos was jolted back to consciousness at a loud explosion and the sound of something soft hitting pavement.

What the hell was that?

The last thing he remembered was Cecil saying the generator was going to -

Oh god. The psychic with the gift of foresight had said the generator was going to explode.

And he could see the familiar form crumpled behind the truck, and he had obviously been thrown from the back of the truck, and oh _God_ please no.

“Cecil!” he shouted, scrambling out from under the truck frantically.

Carlos could just barely see the faintest movements of him shuddering as he ran over. He carefully turned him over, and violet eyes fixed on his face as Carlos ran his hands desperately over his body, trying to find the best place to apply pressure.

So much blood...

“C - Carlos, I - I’m sorry, I couldn’t let you die,” Cecil whimpered, staring up at him.

Carlos shook his head, finally focusing on the wounds in Cecil’s chest, the blood staining the purple tunic dark and shimmering in the bright light.

Metal shards were buried in his chest, and Carlos could feel some of the metal against his leg and arm from where it was through his chest. “Oh gods, Cecil,” he groaned.

“I - I only have a mi - minute or so,” Cecil stuttered hoarsely, looking up at him, and he sounded so certain, like he knew. Damn foresight.

Carlos shook his head as he clutched at Cecil as gently as he could while still holding him against himself. “No, Cecil you can’t die, you _can’t_!” he cried, denying the foresight that made Cecil certain, that made him _know_. His tears glittered as they flew from his face as he shook his head wildly.

“Carlos, I ha - had to save you,” he murmured, reaching a shaking hand up to touch Carlos’ cheek. “D - don’t cry. Please,” he said, then coughed weakly, blood spattering his chin.

(The clinical part of his mind noted that blood must be leaking in to Cecil’s lungs or throat. The rest of him didn’t care.)

Carlos looked down at him miserably, then pulled him close against his chest as gently as he could, trying not to hurt him anymore than he already was.

Cecil was dying, his blood staining the labcoat Carlos hadn’t taken off, and he looked scared and worried and anxious and hurt, but mostly scared.

Carlos couldn’t let him be scared now, not when -

Not when he was dying.

He frantically tried to think of something to help keep him from being afraid.

“ _Hey there,_ _darling,” his mother murmured, smiling despite the time (the middle of the night) because Carlos was in tears. “It was just a nightmare, come here.”_

_ She snuggled him against her side, and began singing gently. _

“You are my sunshine, my only sunshine,” he began shakily, his voice gaining in strength as he sang.

Cecil looked up at him and the faintest traces of a smile touched his face.

“You make me happy, when glow clouds are gray,” he sang, his change getting a small, hoarse giggle from Cecil. “You’ll never know dear, how much I love you. Please don’t take my sunshine away.”

He continued singing, repeating the song as Cecil bled on to him, his eyes growing misty and distant.

Carlos paced the song to Cecil’s slowing breaths, until he was just holding a single note, waiting desperately for Cecil to breath in.

But his violet eyes were dull and staring at a point above Carlos’ shoulder, and his mouth was lax in a way it never had been when Cecil -

When Cecil still breathed.

He broke it off, and sobbed out Cecil’s name. “Please don’t take my sunshine away,” he sobbed.

But his sunshine was already gone and his world was dark.

 

**Author's Note:**

> Feel free to let me know how you liked this piece, either here or on tumblr!


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